Lung fibrosis modeling and compound testing platform using fibrotic lung ECM that recreates the fibrotic disease environment to improve predictiveness and accelerate anti-fibrotic drug development

项目摘要 Xylyx正在开发肺纤维化疾病模型和抗纤维化化合物测试平台，旨在 提高特发性肺纤维化体外模型的生理学相关性和预测价值 (IPF)推动IPF疾病生物学的研究，加快治疗IPF的药物开发。 IPF是一种破坏性、顽固性和危及生命的间质性肺疾病，其特征是 肺泡和呼吸功能进行性丧失。新诊断的IPF病例超过55,000例 每年。中位生存期为3-4年，美国年死亡率超过4万。病原学和 IPF的发病机制尚不清楚。用于基础科学研究的IPF预测动物模型和体外模型 和药物开发严重不足，留下了巨大的未得到满足的需求和市场机会 与生理相关的体外平台，能够进行基于细胞的高保真IPF表型研究。这 SBIR Fast Track将支持IPF疾病商业化的开发和验证研究 体外概括人类IPF病主要特征的建模和复合测试平台 并已被证明支持人肺成纤维细胞的纤维化表型，以改善细胞基础 检测在早期抗肝纤维化药物发现中的作用。技术创新是产品的人IPF纤维化 分离无细胞人IPF肺细胞外基质的专有方法产生的肺特异性 (ECM)与人IPF肺组织的组成和生物力学。我们的“身体仿生法”产生了 标准化的人肺纤维化细胞培养底物用于预测IPF的体外模型，使更多 生理学研究，因此更具预测性，提供了比现有产品更大的竞争优势 就像涂有胶原蛋白的聚苯板。目标是验证和商业化标准人IPF 肺ECM疾病模型和复合检测平台对IPF体外模型的预测作用大大降低 对动物模型的依赖，并为IPF药物开发商提供更相关的结果。具体目标是： (I)测定人肺间质纤维化和正常肺ECM中肺成纤维细胞的转录和代谢组学特征 水凝胶，(Ii)评价人IPF和正常肺ECM水凝胶的质量和一致性，(Iii)执行 IPF标准护理药物的化合物测试研究。在成功完成快车道项目后， Xylyx将向有需要的制药公司的科学家商业化IPF化合物测试平台 用于药物发现和筛选的预测IPF疾病模型，从而降低相关的重大成本 由于疗效不佳而导致晚期自然减退，并有助于开发更好的治疗方案 全球300多万IPF患者。此SBIR Fast Track的产品将立即进入 生物制药和药物开发领域快速增长的细胞培养市场，价值64亿美元 2014年，预计到2024年将达到292亿美元，并将支持药物开发，目标是30亿美元 IPF治疗市场。

PROJECT ABSTRACT Xylyx is developing a pulmonary fibrosis disease modeling and anti-fibrotic compound testing platform aimed at improving the physiological relevance and predictive value of in-vitro models for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) to power the investigation of IPF disease biology and accelerate development of drugs to treat IPF. Devastating, intractable, and life-threatening, IPF is an interstitial lung disease characterized by obliteration of pulmonary alveoli and progressive loss of respiratory function. Over 55,000 new cases of IPF are diagnosed each year. Median survival is 3–4 years, and annual mortality in the US exceeds 40,000. The etiology and pathogenesis of IPF remain unknown. Predictive animal and in-vitro models of IPF for basic science research and drug development are severely lacking, leaving a significant unmet need and market opportunity for a physiologically-relevant in-vitro platform that enables high-fidelity cell-based phenotypic studies of IPF. This SBIR Fast Track will support development and validation studies for commercialization of an IPF disease modeling and compound testing platform that recapitulates in vitro key features of the human IPF disease environment and has been shown to support fibrotic phenotype of human lung fibroblasts to improve cell-based assays in early-stage anti-fibrotic drug discovery. The technological innovation is the product’s human IPF fibrotic lung specificity stemming from proprietary methods for isolating acellular human IPF lung extracellular matrix (ECM) with the composition and biomechanics of human IPF lung tissue. Our ‘physiomimetic approach’ yields standardized human fibrotic lung cell culture substrates for predictive in-vitro models of IPF that enable more physiologic and thus more predictive studies, providing a major competitive advantage over existing products like collagen-coated polystyrene plates. The goal is validation and commercialization of standard human IPF lung ECM disease modeling and compound testing platform for predictive in-vitro models of IPF to greatly reduce dependence on animal models and enable more relevant results for IPF drug developers. Specific aims are to: (i) determine transcriptomic and metabolomic profiles of lung fibroblasts in human IPF and normal lung ECM hydrogels, (ii) evaluate quality and consistency of human IPF and normal lung ECM hydrogels, (iii) perform compound testing studies with IPF standard-of-care drugs. After successful completion of the Fast Track project, Xylyx will commercialize the IPF compound testing platform to scientists in pharmaceutical companies in need of predictive IPF disease models for drug discovery and screening, thus reducing the significant costs associated with late-stage attrition due to poor efficacy, and facilitating the development of improved treatment options for the more than 3 million sufferers of IPF worldwide. The product of this SBIR Fast Track will immediately enter the rapidly growing cell culture market segment in biopharma and drug development, valued at USD $6.4B in 2014 and estimated to reach USD $29.2B by 2024, and will support drug development aimed at the USD $3.0B IPF treatment market.